the 'Panay Incident', when aggressive IJ airmen sank USS Panay (12 Dec 1937), was a bell-weather in alerting the US public to aggressive IJ moves in China, another step in the long road to full-scale war. IJ was thoroughly embarrassed by the sinking of the Panay, conducted a full-scale internal investigation, then released its results to the US, made a diplomatic apology & paid an indemnity to the USA. but the PR damage was done.

youtube vid that you linked looks more like a 'propaganda' newsreel that would've been shown in US theaters 2-4 years later.

the 'Panay Incident', when aggressive IJ airmen sank USS Panay (12 Dec 1937), was a bell-weather in alerting the US public to aggressive IJ moves in China, another step in the long road to full-scale war. IJ was thoroughly embarrassed by the sinking of the Panay, conducted a full-scale internal investigation, then released its results to the US, made a diplomatic apology & paid an indemnity to the USA. but the PR damage was done.

youtube vid that you linked looks more like a 'propaganda' newsreel that would've been shown in US theaters 2-4 years later.

If the US didn't have this film footage of 'The Rape of Nangking', would we have acted different towards Japan?

Very little chance of that. Too many reports from missionarys and other sources. Too much sympathy for the Chinese (a "special interest" of ours since the "Open Door Policy".). Too many reporters looking for "the story" (by the 1930's radio and newsreels were as competative as the "yellow press" had been in the 1890's). And most of all, the Japs were too blatently proud of what they were doing for it to be missed. If you look at it, most of the film shown is from Japanese sources..., only the commentary is in English. Japan's naked aggression against China wass an elephant in the room. You might try to ignore it..., but everybody saw it.

If you're interested in the period, the book (THE SAND PEBBLES) is much more informative than the movie. The author was actually a machinist mate on a gunboat in China in the 1930's. Based on my background, his description of Navy life from the deck plates was very credible. Others have said his analysis of the political and cultural situation at the time was excellent. And--it was a good read.

The "Sand Pebbles" was set in 1927, during the Kuomandungs early campaigns against the Warlords (and to a lesser degree the communist---the war against them would come later). This was in the period prior to a big influx of American forces. The "Big" gunboats like Panay and her sisters were being constructed , and the "China Marines" had not arrived. Mckenna based his book upon stories of the "Old YANGPAT" (Yangzee patrol) that he heard when assigned to the "New YANGPAT" (the new "big" gunboats , not the old Spanish castoff's like Villabos- which the fictious USS San Pablo is based upon).

Admiral Kemp Tolley wrote an excellent history of the YANPAT called , "Yangzee Patrol". He's also write to very different books of his war experinces , "The Cruise of the Lanakai", and "Commissars and Caviar".

_____________________________

"Geezerhood is a state of mind, attained by being largely out of yours". AW1Steve

"Quit whining and play the game. Or go home". My 7th grade baseball coach. It applies well to WITP AE players.